Tuesday, July 10, 2012

33% For Women, Non Territorial State For Dalits

The biggest political achievement in Nepal these past few years have been these two:
  1. 33% reservation for women.
  2. Non territorial state for Dalits. 
The first puts Nepal's democracy ahead of America's, ahead of Britain's. The second puts Nepal's democracy ahead of India's. There is one missing link. Nepal has to be turned into a multi-party democracy of state funded parties. That one element will turn Nepal into the top democracy in the world.
  

Saturday, July 07, 2012

How To Build A Unified Madhesi Party



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The unified Madhesi party can not be the work of the Madhesi Front that is in power. It has to go beyond that. Upendra Yadav also has to be invited. Fringe parties like that of Sarita Giri also have to be brought in, as the Janata Dal. Sharad Singh Bhandari has to be brought in.

The best way to do it is to work towards a general convention. There would be an ad hoc organizing committee comprising of all Madhesi parties big and small. If there is an agreement on the name of the party that would be great. But there can be no agreement on the party president beforehand. That would be for the convention to decide. It would be perfectly okay to hold an election among several contestants.

I can see it being a three month process. From a massive membership drive to move to the village/town/city level conventions to the constituency level conventions, to the district level conventions to the national convention might take a few months.

The party has to be inclusive of the Pahadis in the Terai. It should be named such that it has the option to also expand into the hill districts.

Such a unified Madhesi party, if it were to be formed, would sweep the Terai in the elections to the next assembly. Between that Madhesi party, the yet to be formed Janajati party and the Maoist party of Baburam Bhattarai, they'd secure an easy two thirds majority in the next assembly to give this country the federal constitution it deserves. Which is the whole point. Those three forces should seek a pre-poll alliance and not contest against each other anywhere in the country.

The Idea Of One Madhesi Party

I seem to like names like Sadbhavana Party or Janata Dal. Panja would be a great election symbol. The party flag should have three colors for Himal, Pahad, Madhesh.

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